Posted by sedona on June 15, 2005, at 19:23:03
In reply to SSRI's - question, posted by Sarah T. on June 13, 2005, at 4:48:11
> I am one of those people who does poorly on SSRI's. The more selective they are, the more apathetic and immobile I become. I am interested in hearing from anyone who has actually improved on SSRI's. By improvement, I mean BOTH improvement in mood AS WELL AS improvement in the ability to move towards one's goals (increased motivation, drive, etc). Has anyone who takes SSRI's ever really seen this sort of improvement? I get the impression that many people who don't get worse on SSRI's, don't actually improve that much either. Rather, the improvement seems to be primarily a reduction of anxiety. The anxiolytic properties of SSRI's are not to be dismissed because, for many, anxiety is a significant component of their depression, and once anxiety is alleviated, depression may lift as well.
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> So, my question is, does anyone actually improve on SSRI monotherapy? Improvement, to me, means improvement in mood/outlook/hopefulness, etc. AS WELL AS the ability to bring about obvious, "measurable" improvements in one's personal and professional life.
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> Again, I'm referring to SSRI monotherapy, without augmentation by stimulants or dopaminergic antidepressants.
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>
>Hi- Unfortunately, I too am a person that has had problems with SSRIs. I've tried a ton of drugs. Some of them have been antidepressants including two SSRIs, Prozac and Lexapro, and I've tried Wellbutrin and am currently using Cymbalta. With the exception of Wellbutrin, all have helped me with anxiety. Wellbutrin in general made me extremely irritable to a point that actually scared me. Prozac, Lexapro, and Cymbalta (an SNRI), have all left me apathetic and tired, which has always made me wonder if they were really helping my depression at all. I actually find it very hard to finish anything, to go to work, and to enjoy things in general. Furthermore, I get very frustrated with my psych who wants me stay on antidepressants despite the apathy and lethargy. In my case I am still not sure if all of these problems are side-effects of the drugs or if I am just truly med resistant. Sorry, I can't offer more suggestions for you. The one and only drug that has given me any motivation is the stimulant Adderall. But I have found after a year of use that I need to take more and more just to keep me awake and alert throughout the day. I'm just hoping that we will soon have some new drugs that don't involve serotonin.
poster:sedona
thread:511909
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050611/msgs/513329.html